


Tony Stark, the Dog-sitter’s Quandary

by peteyparker



Series: Adventures of Peter and Mr. Stark + Noodle the poodle-pup [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: A little bit of angst, Fluff, Gen, Precious Peter Parker, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, and a puppy! - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-03
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:40:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24524005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peteyparker/pseuds/peteyparker
Summary: Peter will be leaving for a 3 days field trip, leaving Noodle, his precious puppy, to Tony's care without Pepper present for the first time ever. Will Tony be a good dog-sitter for Peter's beloved pet?ORTony Stark messed up and lost Peter's puppy. He had to find her before Peter's return or he could just pray and hope that Peter does not hate him for losing his baby.
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Adventures of Peter and Mr. Stark + Noodle the poodle-pup [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1770646
Comments: 11
Kudos: 75





	Tony Stark, the Dog-sitter’s Quandary

**Author's Note:**

> This is work is part of the Puppy Parker collection. If you want to read that first you could, but you don't have to read that to understand this one-shot. It'd be great you check that out too though.
> 
> Another thing. I drew and art of Peter and Noodle that I'd leave at the bottom of this fic. I'm not an artist. I was just messing around and tried to draw digitally for the first time. I think it came out okay, but I'm sure there will be mistakes. My friend who does draw fixed some of the coloring and highlights for me. I'll just put both of our arts at the end of the fic :D

“No chocolate, grapes, raisins, nuts, avocados, coffee, alcohol-“

“Kid, I think I know not to give a puppy coffee or alcohol.”

“She needs food 3 times a day. Also, she needs to have Mr. Carrots by her side to sleep at night,” Peter listed, gesturing to the carrot plushie on the couch, “and if you see Noodle getting sleepy during the day, cradling and rocking her would put her right to sleep. Oh! She also loves to do tummy time.”

Tony’s eye twitched. “She’s a dog, not a baby, Pete.”

Looking straight into Tony’s eyes, Peter hugged the small puppy closer to his chest in answer. “Noodle  _is_ my baby.”

“-and it’s time to say goodbye to your  _baby_. You’re going to be late.”

Tony grabbed Peter’s backpack that was lying on the floor and handed it to him with one hand, the other gesturing for the puppy. He knows that Peter being Peter would stay cuddled up with Noodle if he doesn’t do something.

Defeated, Peter turned his attention back to Noodle and put on the incredibly high pitched baby voice that he reserved only for Noodle,  “I’ll see you in a few days, ok Noodle-doodles? Be nice to Mr. Stark,” the kid practically cooed then landed a loud kiss to Noodle’s nose before handing her to Tony.

Taking the precious cargo into his arms, Tony guided Peter with a hand on his shoulder towards the elevator. “Remember kid, no getting into trouble,” he stressed. 

Field trips and the kid just often end in some catastrophic results.

With an apologetic smile, Peter reminded him, “You know, I can’t promise you that.”

Dang this kid and his selflessness, but that’s just who he is. A boy from queens with a heart of gold. Tony loves him for that, even if it causes premature greying of his hair. 

“I know,” Tony softly said as he brought the kid into a one-armed hug.

“I should probably get going,” Peter announced when the elevator dinged. “Bye Mr. Stark, and buh-bye Noodles-baby.” He made kissy faces at Noodle until the elevator doors closed, signing his leave.

Left in silence, Tony flitted his eyes downwards to meet Noodle’s brown eyes.  _God, it reminds him so much of Peter’s . _“Can’t believe you got me beat in the list of Peter’s favorites.” He glanced around the quiet penthouse.

“What do you say we do something in the lab, huh?” Tony absentmindedly remarked before sighing deeply.  _Great. It’s only been 30 seconds and he’s having a conversation with the dog._ Shaking his head to himself, they headed down to his lab.

Although obviously it was not the first time Peter left Noodle in the penthouse (it is where Noodle lives after all, and the kid can’t be at the tower all the time), it was, however, the first time with Pepper’s absence.  Normally, every time Peter was not at the tower, Noodle was Pepper’s responsibility. She’s happy to do it anyway since she’s also smitten with the puppy. This time, Peter would be in a 3 days field trip to Chicago, and Pepper had left for a week in Hongkong.

Despite his inexperience, he had done a great job if he could say so himself. He fed her 3 times a day, bathe her in a bathtub, and even did the ridiculous tummy time Peter insisted on doing.

(Any footage of him lying face to face with a dog on the floor, both on their stomachs while doing a “find the ball” game with plastic cups, was made sure to never see the light of day.)

That was until the day Peter was supposed to come back.

The day started out normally with Tony getting breakfast after getting 3 hours of sleep, Noodle trotting along behind him. He filled Noodle’s bowls with her food and water then started preparing to make pasta for the always hungry kid to eat when he picked him up.

He was just pouring his homemade sauce into a container when he felt like something’s missing.  _Huh_. It’s been quite a while since he last heard the dog’s panting or the pitter-patter of her tiny feet.

Ignoring the slight stutter in his heart, Tony rounded the kitchen counters to check where he left Noodle. He froze. She’s not there. Smothering his growing panic, Tony checked every corner in his penthouse that he possibly could before asking FRIDAY.

“Noodle was last seen entering the elevator with Captain Rogers, Sir,” came FRIDAY’s reply.

_ What? How did that happen? _

Tony hastened his step to pull up a hologram, asking FRIDAY to display the surveillance footage. With bated breath, Tony watched as Steve entered the penthouse to take a pair of earphones on a counter that he must've left the day before when the ex-avengers just moved back into the tower, before heading back to the elevator. Yet, this time with the unknown company of a certain fluffy creature.

He changed the view to the lobby’s cameras noting how Noodle wandered around in the lobby while Steve went out of the exit. His sliver of hope dissipated when he fast-forwarded to see Noodles slipping out of the exit when the sliding doors opened for a man.

_ Shit _ _._ He’s supposed to pick Peter up in 2 hours' time.

Swiping Peter’s boxed lunch, Tony entered the elevator while dialing Pepper. “Pep. Something happened.”

“What did you do, Tony?” Pepper’s warily questioned.

“I may or may not have lost Noodle,” Tony winced. “She just got onto the elevator with Steve then gone out of the tower. I don’t know what to do, Pep. I have to pick the kid up in a few hours.”

Sensing the panic in Tony’s voice, Pepper’s voice softened in her next answer. “Ok. Here’s what you’re going to do. You and Happy take a car and look around for her. She might not be far. Do that until it’s time for you to pick Peter up.”

When the elevator opened, Tony made a beeline towards Happy who was ready with a sleek Audi courtesy of FRIDAY. He sniffs, a nervous habit he does. “And if I don’t find her?”

Pepper sighed. “You need to tell Peter when you pick him up. Then, you can continue your search.” Tony opened his mouth to say something but Pepper beat him to it. “He won’t be happy to be left in the dark, Tony. You have to tell him.”

Slumping in the car’s backseat, Tong let out a harsh breath. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”

After a few reassurances from Pepper, Tony hung up. He felt Happy’s eyes on him through the windshield and pursed his lips. “Circle around the tower’s perimeter, Happy. We have to find Noodle before we go and pick up the kid.”

Surprise crossed Happy’s face. If he was trying to hide his worry to not agitate Tony further, he was doing a bad job schooling his face. Without a word, they rolled out the garage with windows down so they could call out “Noodle!” from time to time.

With no trace of the dog anywhere, it was 12:05 p.m. when they accepted the fact that they have to pick peter up Noodle-less. The air was tense as they drove to Midtown High School until Happy broke the silence.

“I could tell him.”

“That wouldn’t be fair,” Tony dismissed. An uncomfortable feeling settled on his stomach when their car pulled up to Midtown High School.

“He won’t hate you,” Happy pointed out, nailing Tony’s biggest unspoken worry. “He forgives everyone. The kid could not hate someone even if he wants to.”

Through the window, Tony could see Peter spotting the car and then skipped happily towards them after saying goodbye to Ned.

“Yeah well, no one had ever let his precious dog go missing,” He bitterly said and looked away from the window.

A few seconds later, the door opened and a sunshine-filled Peter jumped in. “Hey, Mr. Stark! Hey, Happy!”

_This is hell_ _._ Only the world’s most cruel person would wipe that smile off the kid’s face.  _Guess he’s about to become one_ _._ Tony sniffs.

“Peter, something happened to Noodle.”

Peter’s smile dropped. “W-what? Is she okay?”

Tony braved himself to look into Peter’s eyes. He cut to the point, “I lost her, kid.”

“Lost...her?” Peter tensed.

Mentally preparing himself for any kind of rage from the kid or worse, any kind of hate, Tony let out a harsh breath before confessing. “I lost her. She got on the elevator and out of the tower. It’s my fault. We’ve been searching but we haven’t seen her. I’m so sorry, Peter.”

Tony watched the kid for his reaction and...  _oh_ _._ He changed his mind.  _This is so much worse._

The anger or yelling never came, instead, Peter gave him a tight wobbly smile. “It’s okay, Mr. Stark,” he said with tears shining in his big brown eyes.

Lost for words, Tony stared, horrified as Peter’s bottom lip trembled and a tear escaped from his eye which he quickly wiped with the sleeve of his sweater. Yet, the tears kept coming despite the kid’s effort to stop them, successfully squeezing Tony’s heart.

Wrapping his arms around the kid, Tony held Peter close as restrained sobs escaped him. “I’m so sorry, Peter,” he whispered into the kid’s hair.

“N-no. It’s real- really okay, Mr. Stark,” Peter hiccupped. “I don’t know why I can’t stop crying.”

Tony rubbed Peter’s back comfortingly. “It’s ok to cry, kid. It’s also ok to be mad at me.”

“I’m not mad. I’m sure i-it’s an accident. You didn’t mean to.”

Sighing sadly, Tony ran his fingers through Peter’s curls. “That doesn’t make it alright, kiddo.”

The rest of the ride home was silent except for Peter’s small sniffles that he failed to hide leaving Tony feeling like the biggest asshole in the world. Happy noticed his inner turmoil and threw him a sympathetic glance when they arrived at the tower.

Peter, ever polite, thanked Happy with a small smile before climbing into the elevator with Tony. As the elevator moved, Tony rested a hopefully comforting hand on Peter’s shoulder.

“We’ll find her, Pete.”

Peter turned to look at him with his red-rimmed eyes but a smile was on his lips. “ Of course we will. It’s you.”

He doesn’t deserve Peter’s faith in him, but one thing he knew, was that he wouldn’t rest until Noodle’s back on Peter’s arms. He owed the kid that much.

The elevator opened to the penthouse, with the kitchen still clattered with the mess that Tony didn’t have a chance to clean up. There was a faint noise of a movie playing from the living room’s direction along with the sound of a small bark.

_ A bark. _

They both jerked their head towards each other, wide-eyed, before picking up their steps towards the living room.

The sight they came up upon brought a profound relief to wash over Tony making him weak in the knees. Sitting peacefully on the sofa was Steve Rogers with a fluffy bundle of fluff on his lap.

“Noodle!” Peter shrieked, barrelling towards the sofa. He picked Noodle up and hugged her tightly towards his chest, showering her with kisses.

Steve grinned at Tony’s questioning quirk of an eyebrow. “I noticed her following me on my coffee run. I checked her collar’s address which reads Stark Tower. So, I brought her home with me.” He tilted his head. “I thought it was a bit weird when FRIDAY told me she lives with you. You don’t seem like a dog person.”

Looking at Peter’s figure laying on the carpet with Noodle licking all over his face, Steve smiled. “I guess that’s why.”

Finally allowing himself to relax, Tony joined Steve on watching Peter happily playing with Noodle. “Yeah, he’s why.”

Noticing the pair eyes on him, Peter got up the floor with Noodle in one of his arms to shake Steve’s hand excitedly. “Thank you so much, Mr. Rogers! I’m Peter Parker.”

“Call me Steve and it’s really no problem. I enjoyed Noodle’s company,” Steve said as he shook Peter’s hand.

However, Noodle being found doesn't eliminate the fact that it was Tony's fault in the first place.  Heaving a breath, Tony tapped on Peter’s shoulder until he turned to face him. “Pete, I’m so sorry for letting her out of my sight.”

“I already told you that you’re forgiven. It’s an honest mistake from the footage FRIDAY showed me.”

“You’re too forgiving for your own good, kid,” Tony said, clicking his tongue. “You should probably give her some water. I bet she’s thirsty after her little adventure with Capsicle here.”

“Yeah, you’re right. See,” Peter grinned cheekily, “you  are a good dog-sitter after all.”

Steve let out a laugh and together they watched Peter coo at Noodle who was cradled like a baby on his way to the kitchen.

“He certainly took after his dad,” Steve said with twinkling eyes. “Fatherhood looks good on you, Tony.”

Tony’s eyebrows reached his hairline.

Oblivious, Steve continued, “You raised a good kid."

Before Tony could answer, Peter chose that moment to return with a bowl of water in his hand. “What were you guys talking about?” Peter asked, plopping on the couch. He picked Mr. Carrots and gave it to Noodle who happily bit onto the plushie.

Tony wasn’t sure that Peter looks at him that away, he just lost his precious dog anyway, so he quickly changed the subject. “Grandpa here said he’d be glad to give dog-sitter services whenever we need him to.”

Steve who didn’t think much of the question's deflection chuckles warmly. “Yes, you can count on me whenever you need, Peter. I’d be happy to spend some time with this _wittle angel_ ,” Steve cooed his last words as he bent down to scratch Noodle beneath her ears.

Tony cringed.  _So Steve’s also one of those people_. He successfully dodged that question though. So, that’s a win.

He watched as Peter just simply grinned, looking straight at him. “That’s great, Mr. Rog- I mean, Steve. I won’t be leaving Dad with Noodle for some time soon.”

Something stirred inside Tony’s heart when he heard that word.  _Dad. He must’ve heard then._

His eyes searched Peter’s even as Steve answered amusedly, “Guess the dad-role suits him better than dog-sitter, huh?”

Peter smiled, a pink tinge on his cheeks, holding his eyes on Tony’s as he said his next words, “Yeah, he’s a great dad.”

If Tony blinked rapidly to prevent his eyes from going too blurry, no one needs to know. Except for Peter maybe, because he’s still looking at him.

Tony smiled back. A rare smile that he saves only for the most important people in his life, and to answer Steve’s previous question,

_ He’s the greatest kid. _

**Author's Note:**

> Just to clarify, the drawing that I did is the one with the green background, and the one that my friend fixed the coloring for (because I'm by no means an artist) is the one with the pink background. Please, tell me what you think of the drawings and the fic in the comments, I'd LOVE to hear your thoughts. Stay safe and healthy!


End file.
